The Detroit Auto Show, a major city-wide event, which has been missing from Detroit’s event list since COVID has recently been revitalized for the 2025 edition. The Detroit Auto Show started in 1965 and is regarded as one of the most important events in the automotive industry, featuring charity previews, performances, the auto exhibit, and experiences.
Charity Preview
The 2025 Detroit Auto Show started on January 10 and will end on January 20 at Huntington Place Convention Center in Detroit, this year the event opened up with the charity preview which included the ribbon-cutting ceremony to officially open the auto show along with a performance by Flo Rida. Over the last 25 years, the charity preview has raised over 100 million dollars for children’s charities in southeastern Michigan and 125 million in total. This year beneficiaries for the charity preview included the Boys and Girls Club of Southeastern Michigan, the Children’s Center, the Children’s Foundation, the Detroit Auto Dealers Association Charitable Foundation Fund, a fund of the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan, Detroit PAL, and the University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital. Multiple charities and organizations that work with the health and well-being of children in southeast Michigan.

Bronco built wild experience- courtesy Jacob Hamilton MILive.com
General Attractions
After the exclusive charity preview, the show is open to all audiences, with over 20 attractions, shows, and events. The gallery showcases 50 luxury automobiles representing 12 brands, including Astin Martin, Audi, Ferrari, McLaren, Maserati, and Lamborghini.
The rest of the exhibit has other major companies such as Toyota, Kia, Mazda, Volkswagen, Hyundai, Mercedes, Vanguard, Honda, INEOS, and Lincoln. With their own spaces for vehicle experiences and showcases. Other local and global companies that don’t produce vehicles will also be present at this event. Such as the Benter automotive corporation, Hagerty Insurance, Polish investment and trade agency, NACTOY (North American car, utility, and truck of the year), DTE Energy, the US Army and Marine Corps, Detroit Grand Prix, and the Michigan Science Center.
While looking at and Learning about cars can be fun, the main decider in the purchase of a vehicle is how it drives. This year, there are multiple driving experiences where participants can enjoy a ride along in multiple tracks, including Camp Jeep, the Detroit Grand Prix track, the Bronco Built Wild Experience, and the Empowering Michigan EV Experience.
The camp jeep experience allows attendees to experience and understand off-road driving. Bronco Built Wild Experience takes people through an obstacle course mimicking things like hills and rocks.
For those wanting a more laid-back experience, the Empowering Michigan EV Experience and Detroit Grand Prix track offer normal drives. The EV experience features drives in Cadillac, GM, Chevrolet, BMW, and Rivian vehicles.

Detroit Grand Prix No 3 Chevrolet car courtesy of DAS Website
Special Day Events
January 15, 16, and 17 are special event days with specific focuses. The 15th & 16th are Industry days that feature exclusive industry access hours focusing on three main areas: the Mobility Global Forum, AutoMobili-D, and the Future Leaders Forum. The 17th is racing day with its main focus on motorsports.
Mobility Global Forum will dive into the trends issues, and future of the changing industry of mobility and transportation, featuring; Tarek Abdel-Baset the Chief Engineer of Hydrogen Storage Systems for FORVIA, Eric Warren the Executive Director of Global Motorsports Competition at General Motors Corporation, Analia Jarvis the Manager of Government Affairs at Autoliv, and Katherine Garcia a Director of the Clean Transportation for All Campaign at the Sierra Club as some key speakers and panelists, fireside chats, and other themed panels being planned and displayed in the Huntington Place Atrium and Grand Ballroom stages.
AutoMobili-D features exhibits promoting the latest in mobility innovations globally and partnering with the startup arena serving as a place for up-and-coming tech startups to gain traction in the automotive industry.
The Future Leaders Forum is a new program focused on cultivating the next generation of talent. In partnership with the Engineering Society of Detroit and Michigan Economic Development Corp talent solutions division, The program seeks to connect university students from accredited engineering schools across Michigan to auto and tech industry experts. Racing Day presented by the Detroit Grand Prix, everything motorsports takes the stage featuring a fan ride-along, an autograph session, and a racing panel discussion. Attendees will have the opportunity to talk to and meet top drivers competing in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES (the highest class of American Open wheel racing) and INDY NXT (developmental automobile racing series)races that normally take place at the Detroit GP. Driving stars include Josef Newgarden, David Malukas, Kyffin Simpson, Nolan Allaer, and Callum Hedge. Along with all of this, there will also be multiple race cars, trophies, the winner’s circle experience, and more.
Featured image: Detroit auto show (Courtesy of Click On Detroit).